There is undeniable link between attaining a quality education and living a healthier life. The more education someone attains, the better their chances of living longer lives. Attaining better education has become one of the most important topics for all Latinos. As their population grows, more and more Latinos are both enrolling in college and attaining degrees. However, there are still barriers preventing many Latinos from attaining two- and four-year degrees. According to a story in Inside Higher Ed, community colleges across the country have seen growing populations of Latino residents in their regions. That growth hasn’t often translated to increases in Latino enrollment on their campuses, especially as overall enrollments decline in a largely recovered economy. With that ...
In the 1990s, the citizens of Mancelona, Mich. (1.16% Latino population), had limited access to healthcare, social services, and higher education. Employment opportunities were few and far between. The area had the lowest per capita income in the state, most families lived below the poverty line, and were underinsured or uninsured. The effects hit the area’s young the hardest and the rampant health risks affected academic performance. In the 1994-1995 school year, 39% of all Mancelona high school students dropped out and just 64% of high school seniors graduated. Something had to be done at a fundamental level to affect real change. Like all great changes, what happened in Mancelona started at a grass roots level. In order to reduce health disparities, it is critical to ...
Latinos are already the largest racial/ethnic minority group in the United States. As a group, they are expected to grow from 1 in 6 people today to 1 in 4 by 2035, and 1 in 3 by 2060. All across the country, Latinos are impacting the demographics of nearly every community. In Palm Beach County, Florida (20.37% Latino population), Latinos are making an impact in another avenue. For the first time ever, public schools in the area have more Latino students than any other demographic group. As reported by The Sun-Sentinel, Latinos make up 33% of the district’s 190,240 students. This number is compared to the 32% white and 28% black students. The district’s numbers are strikingly different than the overall racial makeup of the rest of the county which is 60% white. “The ...
Support is still growing strong for Santa Fe's city soda tax, where last week Mayor Javier Gonzales spoke about the benefits for pre-K funding the tax could bring in for the city. The sugary drink tax is estimated to bring in around $7 million dollars to help fund pre-kindergarten education. This week, the city committee meeting on Monday cleared the tax as the committee voted 3 to 1 to recommend approval. According to local Santa Fe New Mexican, nearly two dozen speakers urged the councilors to support the soda tax initiative and put it before voters for the special election in May, including Moms like Meredy Talbot-Zorn who told councilors while holding her young daughter that many kids who are poor are one average 18 months behind their peers in education. Chamber of ...
Currently, 1 in 4 kindergartners nationwide are Latino. By 2050, that number will be 1 in 3. Latinos are the fastest-growing population in the country and they are also becoming the youngest. However, many disparities in education exist between Latinos and other races and ethnicities. A new report from the Child Trends’ Hispanic Institute uncovered some alarming findings regarding Latino kindergartners and their math skills. According to the report, Latino students, on average show up to their first days of school three months behind their white peers when it comes to their mathematics abilities. While they “make up ground” throughout the school year, the achievement gap remains because they start so far behind. “One of the best ways to not be behind the starting gate at ...
It is well-known that there is an undeniable link between education and health. Better educated people have longer life expectancies. For Latinos, barriers often exist between them and obtaining the best education possible, creating disparities between them and other races and ethnic groups. In Park City, Utah (16.43% Latino population), the local school district is taking extra measures to reach out to its growing Latino student base. A new, deliberate, concerted effort has been undertaken to reach out to the area’s growing Latino residents to “ensure all students in Park City schools receive a top-flight education.” The Park City School District hired Eric Esquivel last year to be the Latino Community Relations Specialist and head the new Latino Advocacy Team. The group has ...
The Latino population is growing across the country. They are currently the nation’s largest racial/ethnic minority group. Currently, 1 in 6 people today are of Latino ancestry; by 2035, that number is expected to be 1 in 4. In the state of Oregon, a new report shows that Latinos make up 12% of the state’s population, up from 8% in 2000. In many communities, those numbers are even larger. In the Umatilla School District in eastern Oregon, the number of Latino students currently is set at 65%, up from 42% in 2001. This rapid growth has accounted for some challenges for school district officials. This diverse and growing population calls for more updated methods of communication and outreach. “What families need at 42 percent Hispanic is far different than what they need at ...
Achieving a quality education is one of the key, fundamental social determiners of health. People with higher education levels have better long-term health. More and more Latinos are enrolling in college. One city in the U.S. is looking to make access to higher education even more available than ever. Mayor Ed Lee of San Francisco (15.3% Latino population) recently announced that the city would make college education free “to all its residents” through the City College of San Francisco. The plan will go into effect in 2018 and was made possible due to a tax on properties sold for at least $5 million. “To California residents who are living in San Francisco, your community college is now free,” Mayor Ed Lee said in an interview with USA Today. In order to ...
In 2009 address to Congress, President Barack Obama predicted that by 2020, the U.S. would “once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.” In March of 2009, 41% of all adults in the country aged 25-34 had achieved a college degree. By March of 2016, 48% had achieved degrees, according to Pew Research. To achieve the original goal, 60% of all adults in the U.S. age 25-34 would need to have completed an associate’s degree by 2020. As of 2015, the United States ranked 10th among the 35 countries ranked by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); this ranking was up from 15th in 2009. The U.S. still trailed nations such as Japan and Canada by as much as 10 percentage points. In order to reduce health disparities, it is ...
